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BPL Staff Picks: Best Releases of 2025

Every month, staff from across the Boston Public Library system recommend their favorite books for all ages across a variety of genres. We have rounded up our favorite reads that were released this year, and, as always, we hope this list inspires you to keep reading! Some of these titles may be available in other formats or languages. Check our catalog for availability. Place a hold or check one out today and enjoy a good book! #BPLStaffPicks

User from Boston Public Library

72 items

  • Children's Graphic Novel. The first in a new series, this quickly-solved mystery moves briskly enough for younger readers to follow along as a recently retired doggie detective discovers who's really behind the break-in at a museum. Bright colors,…
    Graphic Novel, 2025London : Flying Eye Books, 2025 — J GRAPHIC DETECTIV STANLEY AND
  • Nonfiction. Syme argues that letter writing is a lost art form and shows us how we can bring the practice back into our routine. This humorous guide has excerpts from famous letters and letter writing etiquette books. Readers will also be advised on…
    Book, 2025New York : Clarkson Potter, [2025] — PE1483 .S96 2025
  • Horror. A quick read that really transports you to Victorian times! This book is full of dark humor, gore, and female empowerment. I enjoyed the quick pace and steady action of this story. - Shane J., Charlestown Branch Library
    Book, 2025New York, NY : Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, [2025] — FICTION FEITO V
  • Fiction. After loving "Black Cake," I was excited for this book and it did not disappoint. I enjoyed reading this generational family epic following Ebby, fresh off of being left at the altar, as she heals and pieces together the connection between…
    Book, 2025New York : Ballantine Books, [2025] — Wilkerson, C
  • Nonfiction. This book offers an incredible history of a second-wave feminist invention and its creator: Marty Goddard's rape kit. This is part true crime, part biography, which makes for a delightful read despite the topic at hand. As Kennedy…
    Book, 2025New York : Vintage Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, 2025. — HV8079.R35 K46 2024
  • Thriller. Just like the first entry in this series about retired female assassins being pulled back into the business, this was a fun thriller full of action and drama! I think Raybourn is really great at writing compelling characters, and she does…
    Book, 2025New York : Berkley, 2025. — Raybourn, D
  • Fiction. A cute family drama that takes place in a sushi restaurant. I fell in love with the cast of characters and cozy setting of this story immediately. - Shane J., Charlestown Branch Library
    Book, 2025New York : Ballantine Books, [2025] — Chong, J
  • Fiction. Calhoun, author of the memoir "Also a Poet," delivers a funny and generous novel about a woman questioning her marriage and expectations. From William James to Taylor Swift, from "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" to Nick Cave (the…
    Book, 2025New York, NY : Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, [2025] — FICTION CALHOUN A
  • Teen Fiction. "Sunrise on the Reaping" gave me what I wanted from a Hunger Games prequel! - Carly S., Grove Hall Branch Library
    Book, 2025New York : Scholastic Press, 2025. — TEEN FICTION COLLINS S
  • Fiction. Annie is nine months pregnant and shopping for a crib at a Portland, Oregon IKEA when the "Big One" strikes the Pacific Northwest. While so much disaster fiction features a lone wolf everyman, it was riveting to read how Annie relies on her…
    Book, 2025New York : Marysue Rucci Books, 2025 — FICTION PATTEE E
  • Children's Graphic Novel. "Very Bad at Math" manages to fit in all the middle school drama you'd expect from a contemporary graphic novel starring an eighth grade class president, along with politics, pizza, learning disabilities, robots,…
    Graphic Novel, 2025New York, NY : HarperAlley, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, 2025. — J GRAPHIC VERY BAD AT
  • I Witnessed

    the Lizzie Borden Story

    Kraatz, Jeramey,
    Children's Graphic Nonfiction. What a read! This book retells the Lizzie Borden case from the eyes of Lizzie's real-life young neighbor, Charlie. A whodunit that encourages readers to think about the facts and make their own assumptions, it's a…
    Graphic Novel, 2025New York, NY : HarperAlley, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2025] — J GRAPHIC I WITNESSE
  • Teen Romance. "Roll for Love" went straight to the heart for me as a D&D-loving queer person from the South--England perfectly captured loving where you're from and being afraid it's not going to love you back. The romance between Harper and Ollie…
    Book, 2025Philadelphia : RP Teens, Running Press Teens, 2025. — TEEN FICTION ENGLAND M
  • Fiction. "Twist" follows Anthony Fennell, an Irish journalist who's down on his luck, as he investigates the world of undersea cables and the repair teams that fix them, which are led by enigmatic engineer John Conway. As the ship travels to repair…
    Book, 2025New York : Random House, [2025] — McCann, C.
  • Children's Picture Book. This hilarious picture book will have older readers laughing out loud! Follow along as you learn why fish are simply never, ever to be trusted. - Maggie L., Central Library
    Picture Book, 2025New York, NY : Dial Books for Young Readers, 2025. — J PICTURE SHARPSON N
  • Children's Graphic Novel. I read this book for the mouth-watering descriptions of baked goods and the whimsy of baking contagious feelings into them, but I loved how Crumble handled losing a loved one at such a young age. - Amy B., Central Library
    Graphic Novel, 2025New York : Algonquin Young Readers, Workman Publishing, 2025. — J GRAPHIC CRUMBLE
  • Fiction. As I was reading Haigh's latest novel (in just three days!), I was worried that it would be one of her first books that I didn't like. There was something somewhat off-putting that it took me a while to identify. When I did, I began to…
    Book, 2025New York : Little Brown and Company, 2025. — Haigh, J
  • Poets Square

    a Memoir in Thirty Cats

    Gustafson, Courtney,
    Nonfiction. I have followed Poets Square Cats for years and was thrilled for this book release. Gustafson writes about feral cats and the people who look after them with eloquence, atmosphere, and compassion. Taking care of community cats also means…
    Book, 2025New York : Crown, [2025] — HV4765.A75 G87 2025
  • Teen Romance. I don't know a ton about K-Pop, but I loved the drama and romance of this book anyways and it would be a great vacation read! Hyeri is a former popstar and aspiring actress who can't shake her (undeserved) bad reputation. Minseok is…
    Book, 2025Los Angeles : Hyperion, 2025. — Teen Fiction Cho, K
  • Fiction. I loved following along with the three different story lines, each so different yet familiar in some ways. Although all three explore the painful effects of domestic abuse, there is hope and so much love found in each. - Liz B, Fields…
    Book, 2025New York : Pamela Dorman Books/Viking, 2025. — FICTION KNAPP F